BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The director general of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, on Thursday welcomed the ceasefire agreement reached in the Gaza Strip and said media and educational facilities should not be used either as targets or shields.

“I commend the efforts of all those who worked to achieve this ceasefire and I hope for the earliest restoration of a peaceful environment so that Israeli and Palestinian children can return to school,” she said.

Earlier Bokova said she was alarmed by the escalation of violence and condemned the killing of three Palestinian journalists in airstrikes a day before that.

"The civilian status of journalists and their right to carry out their professional duties should be respected," she said.